1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates in general to battery booster cable clamps, and more particularly to a battery booster cable clamp having the capability of use with both top-mount and side-mount terminal type batteries.
2. Description of the Prior Art
Various battery booster cable clamps are in common use today for electrically connecting two or more automotive type batteries. These battery booster cable clamps generally comprise two essentially elongate members having handles at one end thereof and electrical contacts at the other end thereof. These elongate members are pivotally connected at their midpoints to pivot in a manner to close the respective electrical contacts around a current carrying member, specifically the battery cable terminal attached to the storage battery of an automotive vehicle.
The electrical conducting or contact surfaces of these general use battery booster cable clamps comprise generally two sections adapted to clamp onto the standard top-mount battery cable terminal in order to "jump start" an automotive vehicle when that vehicle's storage battery is dead. When both the jumping and the jumped vehicles utilize standard top-mount terminal type batteries, conventional battery booster cables work quite well for their intended purpose. However, the introduction of side-mount terminal storage batteries for automotive vehicles has also introduced a problem in the ease with which these batteries may be "jump-started". Side-mount battery terminals are two-part, in that the major electrical connection is provided by (1) an essentially flat annular electrical contact surface, commonly formed as part of the battery casing, and (2) a battery terminal bolt inserted through the battery cable terminal and then threadedly inserted into this annular battery terminal surface in a manner to form a positive electrical connection between the flat annular contact surface of the battery terminal and the battery cable terminal, and between the opposite side of the battery cable terminal and the bolt head portion of the battery terminal. The battery cable terminal and two-part battery terminal are designed such that, with the battery cable attached to the battery terminal, minimal metallic surface is exposed to the atmosphere, in order to reduce the buildup of corrosive elements thereon. The negative aspect of this otherwise improved design is that it becomes rather difficult to connect a standard battery booster cable clamp to the head portion of the battery terminal bolt sufficiently to effect an electrical connection suitable for carrying the current required to start the vehicle. Additionally, inherent vibration and jostling of the automotive vehicle during the battery interconnect and engine start operations tend to snap the standard battery booster cable loose from the side-mount terminal bolt.